Fairhope's Old K-1 Schoolhouse Turns On Its Lights the Same Night as the Downtown Trees

On Thursday, Nov. 19, the City of Fairhope lights the downtown Christmas trees at Fairhope Avenue and Section Street. That same evening, a block and a half away, the lights come on inside the K-1 Center at 100 S. Church St. for the first time since the building closed as a school in 2011. The timing is deliberate. Hatch Fairhope, the Baldwin County Economic Development Alliance and the City of Fairhope are holding the building's grand opening around the tree lighting. Their invitation says they will "turn the lights on for the first time at the K-1 Center."

That matters for residents who have spent more than a decade wondering what would happen to the 1925 schoolhouse. Once it opens, the building runs as a membership workspace. The free open house on Nov. 19 is the one confirmed time the whole town is invited in.

Thursday, Nov. 19, hour by hour

The evening is split across two sites a short walk apart, so the order of events is worth knowing ahead of time.

The hosts describe the 6:15 reception as following the Lighting of the Trees celebration. The city's listing for the tree lighting runs until 7:30, so the two overlap on paper, and the reception starts while the downtown event is still going.

The Hatch registration page lists the whole celebration from 3:30 to 8:30 p.m. Hatch says the public portion includes guided tours, free food and refreshments, a free gift while supplies last, and activities for all ages. The Hatch event page itself still showed "Date TBD" in mid-October. The Nov. 19 schedule above comes from the registration page linked from it, which is the better one to check.

On streets and parking, the registration page says De La Mare Avenue and parts of Fairhope Avenue and Section Street will close for the Lighting of the Trees. It lists parking behind the K-1 Center, some street parking, and the City of Fairhope parking garage. Because parking behind the school is available, one easy plan is to park once at K-1, walk to the trees for 5:30, and walk back for the 6:15 reception.

Fifteen years of plans for one schoolhouse

The building on Church Street opened as an elementary school in 1925 and taught local students for 86 years. Its reuse has been argued over several times since. In order, the plans looked like this:

1. 2007. A memorandum of understanding between the city and the county school board called for an educational use at the site. City officials said at the time they wanted to avoid a sale to developers for condos or other residential use, AL.com reported in 2011.
2. 2011. After public opposition at a Fairhope meeting, the City Council voted unanimously to ask the county school board to keep K-1 open. The superintendent estimated that closing it could save up to $720,000. The school closed that year.
3. 2013. City officials suggested reusing the building as a performing-arts venue, possibly with a film institute, according to AL.com.
4. 2018. The council's plan for a technology and educational hub competed with a proposal for a boutique hotel, and supporters of the hotel idea pushed for public debate and a feasibility study, AL.com reported. The council unanimously endorsed a $4 million package for the school, the park and the Nix Center: $2.5 million at closing plus $300,000 a year for five years. The city says it bought the K-1 property that year.
5. 2021. The council voted to lease four buildings to the Fairhope Educational Enrichment Foundation for $1 for arts, science and math enrichment, with a performing-arts center described as a possible later phase, NBC15 reported.
6. 2022. The city announced a $2.5 million federal EDA grant for Hatch, with total renovation investment of $3.125 million and a 2024 target for completion.
7. 2023. The council approved $293,000 for architectural and engineering work and $151,900 for campus planning while the city assessed the building's condition and asbestos, Gulf Coast Media reported.
8. 2025. The council approved a $6.1 million renovation contract and a 15-year lease to Hatch at $1 a year, according to AL.com. Rogers & Willard is doing the work, and the building's historic exterior is being kept.

The 2024 completion target from 2022 slipped to 2026. At the June 2025 groundbreaking, Mayor Sherry Sullivan called the project "both a farewell and a bold new beginning," Mobile Bay Now reported. She added that "the K-1 Center holds cherished memories for generations of Fairhope residents."

What the renovated building holds

Hatch is a partnership of the City of Fairhope, the Baldwin County Economic Development Alliance and Coastal Alabama Community College. It offers coworking space, educational programs and support for technology startups. Before this move, it ran out of 55 S. Bancroft St.

Hatch's own site lists what the new space includes:

• 50 coworking spaces and 27 private offices
• Two conference rooms and a creator studio for audio and video recording
• A coffee bar and shared kitchen
• Meeting space for up to 250 people
• An outdoor work area and courtyard

Most of that is reached through membership or by inquiry. Hatch's join page offers coworking, private offices and a "Friends of Hatch" tier, and its event space is booked through an inquiry form. Posted hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with Saturdays by appointment. Mobile Bay Now reports that plans include a display on the K-1 Center's history. For anyone who went to school there, the Nov. 19 guided tours are the clearest open invitation to see how the classrooms were reworked.

The arts idea that keeps coming back

The 2013 plan to make K-1 a performing-arts and film building never happened. In November, though, Fairhope's arts calendar fills the rest of downtown during the same weeks the schoolhouse reopens. The 2025 renovation coverage also notes that the surrounding campus may be master-planned later, possibly including a performing-arts center.

Plein Air Fairhope, Nov. 2 to 7. The Eastern Shore Art Center at 401 Oak St. runs its eighth annual paint-out. Sixty artists will set up from sunrise to sunset on downtown streets, at Mosher's Castle, Fairhopers Community Park, the Pier and on local farmland. For $50, the "Pick My Spot" option has an artist paint your home or business, and you get VIP early entry to the opening reception with first chance to buy the painting. Here is the rest of the week:

• Nov. 4, 1 to 2 p.m.: a gallery talk with judge Cory Wright, $15
• Nov. 6, 6 to 8 p.m.: the free exhibit opening during First Friday Art Walk, with the Members' Open Show and live music from Karin and Eric Marrero
• Nov. 7, 9 to 11 a.m.: a Quick Draw at the art center, open to all ages, donations welcome
• Nov. 8, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.: a Just Plein Fun workshop with Robin Popp, $200 or $175 for members

Paintings from the week stay on display through Dec. 19.

Fairhope Film Festival, Nov. 12 to 15. Opening night is the first U.S. showing of Luck My Life, directed by Eric Wong, about a mahjong player who loses his luck. The $60 Unlimited Movie Pass covers screenings but not opening night or the red-carpet party. The $150 All Access Pass includes both: the Nov. 12 opening film and party and the Nov. 14 red-carpet party.

The days around the 19th

Some regular stops wrap up as the holiday events begin. The fall Fairhope Farmers Market behind the Public Library has its last Thursday on Nov. 12, with November hours of 2 to 5 p.m. The night after the tree lighting, Friday, Nov. 20, Robert Earl Keen plays Live at Five. Tickets are sold through the series' show page.

That puts three downtown evenings close together: First Friday on Nov. 6, the trees and the K-1 opening on Nov. 19, and Live at Five on Nov. 20. The school on Church Street is the newest stop on that walk.

Some of us at Leigh McPherson have watched the K-1 Center sit empty through more than a decade of plans, and we'll be on Church Street on Nov. 19 to finally see the lights on inside. If you'd like to talk about what downtown projects like this mean for Fairhope and the Eastern Shore, our team is always glad to compare notes.